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AA2 The Salt Lake Tribune OPINION Sunday, May 28, 2000 What Comes After Lebanon: New Peace Process or War? estinian demonstratorsin the Gaza Strip. , “In the Arab world, more and more people are saying that the only language Israel understands is the language of force,” wroteleading Israeli military analyst Ze’ev Schiff in the paper Ha‘aretz. And there is sometruth in that. Just the Palestinian ‘intifada’ of the early 90s finally made Israel start negotiating with Yasser Arafat's Palestine Liberation Organization, so the hemorrhage of casualties finally forced Israelto pull out of Lebanon. The question therefore arises naturally in the minds of Arabs whostill have unfinished business with Israel: does the retreatfrom Lebanon meanthatIsrael is now ready to makedeals that they can live with, or does it meanthat moreforce needsto be appliedfirst? Not too much should be made of the chaotic final stages of the Israeli pullout from Lebanon. Israelsuffers from the same popular aversion to military casualties that nowaffects every country with welldeveloped mass media, but it couldstill paythe price in lives if Israelis thought their national survival wasatstake(as it certainly was notin Lebanon). Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak may be embarrassed at the moment, but he has vactually kept his electoral promise to evacuate Lebanonby July. His next deadline is Sept. 13, when he must concludethe final status agreement that defines the borders and powers of a Palestinian state in theterritories thatIs‘rael has occupied since the 1967 war. miles long and 100 yards deep at the north-eastern cornerof the Sea of Galilee, from which Israel drawsalmosthalf ofits fresh water. The other is some 40 square miles of land at the foot of the Golan Heights known as Sheba’a Farms, now thesite of Israel's only ski resort and hometo a large numberofresettled Ethiopian Jews. The Galilee shoreline, where Assad swam asa child, was the stumbling block that killed an Israeli-Syrian peace deal last January.It wasall Syrian land until June 5, 1967, and it should have gone back to Syria with therest of the Golan Heights as part of the deal, but Barakheld it back because many Israelis feared that Syria mightpollutethelakeorsteal the water or something. Sheba’a Farmswasalso captured from Syria in June 1967, but both Syria and Lebanonnowinsist that it belongs to the latter, and must be evacuatedas part ofIsrael’s withdrawal from Lebanon.If not, according to Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, then the guerillas will be obliged to continue their attacks onIs- raeli troops. That would give Assad leverage against Israel, since only he can call Hezbollahoff. Butit wouldalso kill not only the chance ofan Israeli-Syrian peace treaty, but even the somewhatbrighter prospectofa final settlement betweenIsrael andthe PLO this year. If the above arguments seem so petty that they verge on surreal, that’s because they are. You cannotexpectrationality to rule in a region that has been at war for over 50 years. A comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace is This is not as hopeless a project as it would seem from last week’s outburst of practically inevitable soonerorlater, be- frustrated violence by young Palestinians in the West Bank, and the lunatic threat by Gen. Shlomo Oren, head ofIsraeli security Arabs too numerous, for any more dra- causetheIsraelis are too powerful, and the THE PUBLIC FORUM Letters from The Tribune’s readers False Assertions Whereto Write In response to Cynthia Hallen’s letter @ When submitting letters to the (Forum, April 24) stating that Gov. Mike Public Forum,please include your full name, signature, address and daytime Leavitt has betrayed Utah’s “family values,” weoffer the following: First, she attacks the governor for vetoing the abstinence-only sex ed bill, stating that the governorhasaligned himself with Utahns @ Keep it short. Concise letters developing a single theme are more likely to be published. » M Please type and doublespace. issue. ‘ The“abortion industry” as Ms. Hallen’ refers to it, does not “maintain itself” through “promiscuousteen-agers.” Amer- on the West Bank,to attack Yasser Arafat’s matic outcometo be possible. It would not be a just peace, and everybody involved wouldhateit, butit could even be made to headquarters with Cobra helicopter gun- last. It may still be within reach this year. the industrialized world because so many Americans hold the samefalse belief that Ms. Hallen professes: Ignorance is bliss. Butit could be warinstead. However, research shows us that igno- peace process, though only 13 percent Gwynne Dyer is a London-based independent journalist whose articles are published in 45 countries. Will or Trust Should Include Organ Donation Information When you're putting yourestate plan together and saying in your Will or Trust howyou want to give your money and your POINT OF LAW property whenyoudie, you might consider including a statement of your intention to be an organ andtissue donor. That way x you mightbe giving the mostpreciousgift ofall,life itself. When you become an organ or tissue donor, it becomespossible that you could improve thequality oflife, or even save the i en or more people whosuffer from bliridness| burns, congenital de- fects, cancer] bone\injuries 01 u re. ran fail- EDWARD McDONOUGH Although many organ transplants are performed in this country every year, many morepatients’ conditions severely deteriorate while waiting for a transplant, and many die before a transplant becomes available. Each year, the waiting lists for transplants exceed 50,000 people who may need bone, corneas, skin, tendons, ligaments, small intestines, pancreas, lungs, kidneys, livers, heart valves or whole hearts. Organandtissue donation has been facilitated by the adoption, in every state, of 4 z id f eae by a form of the Uniform AnatomicalGift Act. Underthe Anatomical Gift Act, a properly signed donor card can be kept in your wallet, or your driver license can have a designation identifying you as an organ and tissue donor. These documents, while legally sufficient, may not be enough, by themselves, to ensure that your wishes to be a donor are carried out, You should inform your family members about your intention to be a donor, so to know in advance that the patient intends to be a donor. You should tell your family members about your intention to donate tissue and organs, and you should include your intention in yourestate plan. That way, the people to whom youentrust the carrying out of your estate plan and to whom you give copies of your will, powers of attorneyor trust, will also have in writing your plan to donate usable parts of your body at the time ofdeath. A “Statement Under theUniform Anatomical Gift Act,” can be part of your estate plan package. . Thestatement can be in this form: “In the hope that I may help others, I hereby makethis anatomical gift, if medically acceptable, to take effect upon my death: I give any organs or parts for the purposes of transplantation, therapy, or medical research. Limitations or special wishes,ifany, are as follows:” Then you put in anything you want by wayof limitation. If you don't want your body used as a teaching cadaver in a med- rance in matters of sexuality leads to disease and unplanned pregnancy. If Ms. Hallen has done any research, she would knowthatstudy after study supports thorough,fact-based (not shame-based) sexual education to be the best preventative to early sexual experience, unplanned pregnancy and STD transmission, Gov. Leavitt correctly chose to put the health of our children before the unfounded rhetoric of the abstinence-only camp. Ms.Hallen has also either misread or blatantly ignored the validity of studies linking abortion and breast cancer. For facts on this issue, one may contact the Alan GuttmacherInstitute or the National Abortion Federation. To her statement that cervical canceris linked to sexual activity, she is correct. Cervical canceris directly linked to the sexually transmitted disease known as HPV.This is why education about birth control and “safer sex”is so important. Finally, Jane Fonda spoke at a Utahns for Choice fund-raiser. UFC is a pro-choice organization, meaning they support every woman's constitutionally protected right to decide whether or not to continue a pregnancy. Pro-abortion indicates’ that they would influence a woman toward choosing abortion. UFC does not push people one wayor another, but encourages women to educate themselves and make the choice thatbestfits their life. In fact, a nine-months-pregnant womanhosted the fund-raiser; UFC supports her choice as they would anyother. It is fine for Ms. Hallen to hold antichoice opinions,it is a free country, but she may want to check her facts more accurately before having an. anti-abortion tiradein the Public Forum. ROBIN TRACY SIDNIE OLSENand8 others Salt Lake City eliminated. Lake Tribune, P.O. Box 867, Salt Lake City, Utah 84110 @ Our fax numberis (801) 257-8950. Strategy Failed It was reported that at his latest news conference, Gov. Mike Leavitt became upset over questioning as to his motives in letting HB320 pass withouthis signature. Noreasonto get upset, though, for surely he should haverealized that the only way. to have shown thatthere was no deception involved was to have either just signed or vetoed the bill —as simpleas that. But now he hasa dilemma. To have signed the bill would have meant,blatantly but honestly, revealing to the Utah ratepayer where hisfeelings and intentions really stood in the matter, and this he knew hepolitically could not do. However,to show that there was nofavoritism involved and to have vetoed the bill could mean a potential loss of millions in profits to Questar — its leaders, and stockholders, which, interestingly, includes Dixie Leavitt in both cases. This now puts our governorback to his original alternative and to what he hoped was the answerto his dilemma:to let the bill pass withouthis signature. This way he gets what he truly wants and yet assumes to avoid the consequence as if he had really signed the bill. A good try, but will he get awaywith it? Timewill tell. LINCOLN C. LECHEMINANT Holladay Q I volunteerat the Daughters of Utah Pioneers Museum atthe head of MainStreet anddirectly west ofthe Capitol. Thetraffic comingalongthis artery on theeastside of the museum from the north is very heavy and traveling at a fairly high speed. Although there is a crosswalk at the intersection of Columbus and Apricotstreets, the cars zooming down thehill on the way into town very seldom even slow down,let alone stopfor pedestrians trying to cross to or from the Capitol side. This crosswalk is the only wayto cross this busy thoroughfare to the parking lot on the west side of Sac The high-speed drivers, who to honor the crosswalk markings, also create a problem for those who drive north up Main. Street, onto Columbus Street, and need to make left turn intothe parking lot behind the museum. I realize that part of the problem has been caused by the work on the freeway, but as new exits open up, such as the 600 North exit or Beck Street, surely some of this trafficfrom the north could start using another entry into the city rather than the one along VictoryRoad. ° a MARYB. HARRIS. Salt LakeCity Masterof Emotionalism Sen. Orrin Hatch writes in his commentary calling for Congress to lead an inquiry into the government's seizure of Elian Gonzalez states,“It is critical in situations like this explosive custody battle that we do notlet politics ofthe momentor fleeting emotions sway our i findit hard to believe these words coming from a senator whoseizes every political momentandtosses out his emotions with the most inflamed and misguided rhetoric. Iremember Orrin’s pontificating role in the Anita Hill debacle; smearing her and General Motors Did It Donald Kraack (Forum, May 14) wonders what happened to the “streetcars,” nowcalled lightrail, that he recalls riding around thevalley in the old days. Well Mr. Kraack, General Motors is what happened. Like Microsoft today, GM back then used its monopoly power to fatten its wallet at the expense ofthe public under the guise of giving consumers whatthey want. As Mr. Kraack notes, streetcars were once cheap and convenientand relatively non-polluting compared with the now ubiquitous automobile, and that was a big problem for GM. GM wanted to make more meant and responsiblefor (tax evasion, bribery, slush funds and the break-in itself). I’m sure it would be a headliner as Mr. Hatch has no Sen, Hatch is nothingbut a politician of the moment and does nothing butlet fleet- ing emotions his ‘There are numerous butfresh in my mind pointless pushing of an anti-flag. I suggest we all write to Gov, Mike Leavitt and ask him to do his elected job, looking oui for us, the taxpayers, his employers, I refer to the article (Tribune, April 28) that noted that Questar Corp.reported a 16 percentincrease in earnings the first quarter of its 2000 fiscal year. May I point out that our change in the la w that will result in Questar Corp, and other publicly ited companies having and Suibectaeecame pee @@ Letters are condensed andedited. ™@ Because of the volume of mail received, not all submissions are published. % @ Mail to Public Forum, The Salt Remember Employers F According to the last opinion poll, 71 percent of Palestinians still’ support the ica hasoneof the highest abortion rates in i £ bi 2 shipsif he did notcall the demonstrators off. telephone numbers. Information other than your nameandthecity in which youlive are keptconfidential. for Choice (UFC) and against family val- ues. Gov. Leavitt has a decidedly antiabortion track record, spending a record $1 million in court to defend Utah’s blatantly unconstitutional 1991 anti-abortion law. Both Gov.Leavitt and the Utah Legislature knewthis law would be struck down bythe courts but had a million-dollar point to makefor people like Ms. Hallen. Next, Ms. Hallen derides the UFC for exercising the same right to free speech that the Eagle Forum abuses on a regular basis. UFC andits supporters called and sent e-mails to the governor in order that he may knowthewill of the people on this Use Alternative Routes The editorial regarding the “Traffic Nightmare” on Main Street and North Temple (Tribune, May 2) prompts me to make a comment. Perhaps if the drivers who comefrom North Salt Lake and Davis County — and choose to enter the city driving on Victory Road, then Columbus Street, and on to Main Street from the north, past the Capitol — would take another route into the city, someofthetraffic problems at. North Temple could be } i erybody tensed for the next act in the drama. “Lebanon today, Palestine tomorrow,” read the placardscarried by jubilant Pal- _ t ping Cokealone, except for a bodyguard,in press leaks suggest that the deal may be more acceptable to Palestinians than was previously assumed:90 percentofthe West Bank,andnotjust two-thirds. Thatdeal couldstill be sold to Israelis — IF they are convinced that peace andsecurity will really be the result. But that now dependscritically on whetherthere is peaceon Israel’s northern borders for the nextsix to 12 months. Thatchoice lies in the hands of Syria’s ailing President Hafiz Assad. Through his control of Hezbollah’s supply lines, he has a big say in whether there is peace or war onIsrael’s northern frontier — and it comes down,in the end, to twoinsignificantpatches ofland. Oneis a stretch of shoreline about six & years of occupation, the SLA disintegrated in days. Gen. Lahad waslast spotted sipa café in northern Israel. By Wednesday, the Hezbollah guerillas whose attacks finally forced an‘ Israeli withdrawal (over 200 Israeli troops and 652 SLA menkilled since 1985) were firingcelebratoryburstsinto the air a stone’s throw from Israel's northern border — and ev- torate has fallen below 40 percent, but a month. “But I am staying there no matter howbadit gets.. . . Just like you [Jews] at Masada, wewill fightto thelast.” Well, not exactly. WhenIsrael began pulling out ofits security zone in southern Lebanon after 22 think that Barak can deliver an agreement. Their doubts are understandable, since Barak’s popularity with the Israeli elec- e BY GWYNNE DYER “] thought of leaving,” said Gen. Antoine Lahad, commander of the Israelicontrolled South Lebanese Army, last I), GM raised the price cars to recoup whatit spentto kill the streetcars, GM got and the got robbed, |
